


Run to the edge of the world

by Givethemtriumphnow



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Main Video Game Series), Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types, Pokemon Mystery Dungeon, Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Red Rescue Team & Blue Rescue Team
Genre: AKA, Ash and Pikachu always find each other, Ash is a bulbasaur, Bulbasaur!Ash, Canon: Pokemon Mystery Dungeon Red/Blue Rescue Team, I assume???, I cried rereading it, I cried writing this, I will be crying like a baby at the end of the game, New plot elements, Pokemon Mystery Dungeon - Freeform, Red Rescue Team, Red Rescue Team spoilers, Reincarnation, Rescue team DX spoilers, Stop making sentient species without hands useless 2k20, The haunting/tense scene where we have to leave town and it's completely silent, WHY CANT WE HAVE A CONDENSED TAG!??!?, and i made the mistake of naming my main character Ash and having Pikachu as my partner, because this is my playthough, can you guess what the emblem is?, couldn't think of a proper title, don't know if I'll make more for this?, gods i am weak for this game, i will cry multiple times while replaying it, i've been replaying the original red rescue team, in this world and the next, listen, maybe when i eventualy play explorers of sky finally, pokemon have tools to fit their needs just like humans, so that made my crying over this game even more, stop making pokemon/dragons/etc useless because they have claws instead of fingers, taking some liberties, thanks Within Temptation, thats just ableism disguised as.... i dont even know, this was written over the course of an hour, why the FUCK are there so many pokemon fandoms????
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-17
Updated: 2020-03-17
Packaged: 2021-03-01 02:13:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,126
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23187574
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Givethemtriumphnow/pseuds/Givethemtriumphnow
Summary: Red Rescue Team scene rewrite:Ash sneaks into town for the last time, knowing if he is caught, not only will he be put to death, but Pikachu will share his fate as well.
Relationships: Pikashipping - Relationship, Satoshi | Ash Ketchum/Satoshi no Pikachu | Ash Ketchum's Pikachu
Comments: 6
Kudos: 24





	Run to the edge of the world

Heart in his throat, breath held deep in his chest, Ash took his first step off of the river bridge and into the town proper.

The cobblestones were rough, but mercifully quiet beneath his feet as he crept past the welcome sign and made his way past the hedgerows and fencing surrounding the market; mist hung low to the ground, and the sun, just peeking over the horizon in the distance, glinted dimly against morning dew still decorating the trees and grass.

Hesitating at the gate that was perpetually open, Ash considered it⏤ he was here to resupply, possibly for the last and most critical time, but how could he do it? He might be a fugitive now, but just the thought of stealing, no matter how necessary, made guilt weigh heavily on his shoulders.

An image, of Pikachu, starving and weak, unable to defend them from countless feral pokemon flashed through his mind, and Ash steeled his nerve.

He had to do it, for Pikachu if not for himself.

Taking a deep, steading breath, Ash cautiously made his way up to the counter, where the younger of the two brothers had fallen asleep in the booth. The older, glossy brother was nowhere to be seen, but the blanket draped over the younger brother's shoulders meant that he must have headed home to a proper bed, and left his brother to sleep undisturbed; there were no threats in town, no one would steal from or harm the other residents, they were too closely-knit. They feared no threat.

...Until now.

Grimacing, Ash stretched up onto his tiptoes and peered over the tall counter, keeping one wary eye on the sleeping shopkeeper as he considered the wares lined on the gleaming, dark shelves inside the small market, hands pressed on the edge of the counter for balance.

Biting his lip in thought, Ash automatically dismissed the Orbs lining the right side of the shack, knowing they had enough stored away that he couldn't even consider stealing more⏤ instead, his eyes were drawn to the row of gleaming, fresh apples that lined the shelves on soft cloth directly behind the shopkeeper.

A tightness in his chest made Ash realize he had been holding his breath since he approached the counter, and he let it out in as soft a gust as he could, paranoia making him angle his face away from the shopkeeper, lest he somehow wake him with the subtle movement of air.

As though mocking his thoughts, a breeze kicked up and gusted through the sleepy town, rattling windows and sending hanging signs creaking in the dawn light. The fog stirred eerily, swirling close to the ground and casting hazy, odd shadows that made his skin crawl with unease.

Heart pounding in his throat, Ash waited until the breeze had died down before moving again.

_I've wasted too much time._

Sending an apologetic, guilty glance at the shop keeper, Ash braced himself, and slowly, quietly, let a few of his vines unspool, long hours of practice making the subtle, silent movements second nature, wether in combat or at peace.

Snaking his vines through the air, Ash grabbed as many of the largest apples as he could see, holding them aloft as he sent out more vines to collect the smaller fruits as well, the tiny bristles making it easy for him to hold his collection securely, twisting and twirling multiple smaller fruits up on one vine wherever possible.

Dropping softly back to all fours, Ash took a precious second to rebalance his cargo, adjusting his hold until he was able to carefully deposit all of the fruits into the rugged saddlebags that hung on either side of his bulb, leaving enough room for him to sleep comfortably in the harness, while still having room for new growth to come in.

The last apple deposited, Ash reached a smaller vine into the small pouch that hung close to his neck, deftly undoing the small drawstrings and pulling out what he'd calculated would cover the cost of his theft, plus a little extra as an apology⏤ for everything, really.

Slipping the coins into a seperate Pay Pouch, Ash quietly hung the pouch on the hook above the younger Kecleon brother, knowing it would probably be spotted before his 'theft' was even noticed.

Maybe, if his luck held out, they would think another Rescue Team had come through in the early morning, and not Ash the Bulbasaur, Pokemon Square's most wanted.

Retreating down the cobblestone path with his heart pounding with adrenaline still, though calmed slightly by his first success, Ash moved onto his next, and last destination in town⏤ Kangaskhan's Storage.

Cutting through the overgrown hedges separating the back of Kangaskhan's property from the path with a few well-placed Razor Leaves, Ash wiggled through the small gap he had created, shaving five minutes off of his usual route from the shop to the storage by avoiding the official winding, curved path of cobblestones.

Trotting quickly through the small yard that lined the back of Kangaskhan's storage, Ash was grateful for the shadows cast by the large hedgerows on either side, keeping him hidden as the sun very slowly made it way over the forest, painting the skies soft pinks and oranges.

Sidling around the side of the building, Ash peered over the counter, but was unsurprised to find the hut was empty⏤ Kangaskhan had to care for her young daughter after all, and always left before dusk to head home to her den in the next valley; she would not return to her storage hut until the sun was much higher in the sky than its current dawn angle.

Using his vines and 'hands', Ash hauled himself up onto the counter, using a support beam in the ceiling to help his ascent. A few nicks and gouges joined the ones already present on the battered counter from his stubby claws, but he hoped she wouldn't notice.

Shifting cautiously from his new vantage point, Ash craned his neck to peer over the hedgerows, making sure no one else was present⏤ thankfully, the town was deserted save for the youngest Kecleon brother; all of the other residents had gone home for the night.

...Making sure to get a good night's rest before going on the hunt for _Ash_ , most likely.

And of course, Pikachu was getting dragged down in his mess with him, too.

Shaking his head to banish the unproductive thoughts, Ash focused back on the task at hand, and peered into the dark hut, squinting in the dim lighting to find the emblem for Lionheart amidst the wall of shelving units decorated with various metal Rescue Team emblems and more mundane, wooden personal symbols for regular citizens and families.

Finally spotting the telltale glint of gold, copper and silver that made up their Team's emblem, Ash extended a multitude of vines, pulling open the drawer and leafing through the alphabetized categories. Finding the one marked Gummies with one vine, Ash fished out all of the ones he and Pikachu had stored away, tangling up the lot of them in a single vine, whilst the others worked at fishing out two precious Reviver Seeds, and a matching pair of Escape Orbs.

Thankfully, he and Pikachu had never had cause to use either priceless piece of equipment, but this was probably the last time they would ever be able to visit this town, or any other, again. They wouldn't have the luxury of pit stops or recuperating from long crawls in safe, soft nests at their home base⏤ not anymore.

They were fugitives now, thanks to Ash, and they would be killed on sight, hunted mercilessly by Rescue Teams and civilians alike, once word spread.

He wouldn't take a chance on leaving these behind, and risk dooming them in some gods-forsaken dungeon.

Pocketing the items on the other side of his saddlebags, Ash pulled out the few more apples they had placed into storage. They had planned on saving the huge fruit for when they were going on particularly long or slow Rescue missions, but now, they were going to need all the food they could carry⏤ they couldn't rely on scavaging food reliably during their journey, especially when they….

They didn't really have a destination in mind.

They could only plan ahead as much as supplies went, and when those supplies ran out… they would have to get by, somehow.

Closing the storage drawer tightly, Ash turned away, ready to hop off the counter and make his way back to where Pikachu was anxiously waiting…. Then hesitated.

Turning back to their storage drawer, Ash stared at their emblem, glinting softly in the dawn light. Biting his lip, he only considered the stray thought for a moment, before acting on it.

Sending out two vines, he wrapped one around the lower silver tines of their emblem, and with the other, whipped it sharply between the mounting holding it to their drawer⏤ with a heart-stopping _THWACK!_ It came loose from the drawer, and he quickly caught it before it could clatter loudly on the floor.

Clutching their emblem in his vines, Ash drew it close and put it into the backpack that was strapped between the back of his head and his bulb, the medium-sized pack he used for delicate items, and to help carry and shelter small or young Pokemon from the dangers of ferals or the environment itself.

Knowing he had overstayed his time, and that Pikachu was probably getting worried, Ash turned around for the last time, accepting that their storage would most likely be raided, but at least he had saved their emblem from being vandalized.

From that first day, when Pikachu prompted him to pick their Team name, Ash had always felt this same odd affinity, and a strange, out-of-focus vision in his mind's eye.

" _What should we call our Rescue Team, Ash?"_

" _Lionheart." The response was immediate, and instinctive._

" _Lion-heart? Hah, that sure is a strange name, but you know what? I like it! It suits you! Okay, Lionheart it is!"_

When the time had come to mail in their name and emblem design to the Rescue Guild located across the sea, Ash had spent the entire night and part of the next day training his new, unwieldy, stubby claws into holding a writing utensil.

At first, he had tried describing the design in his mind to Pikachu, but he couldn't articulate it well enough to guide his new friend's artistic paws in a way that matched the vision floating in his head.

So, they had delayed mailing in their Rescue Team submission while Ash painstakingly taught himself to draw in the dirt with sharped stick, until he had a design down that Pikachu was able to copy with smoother lines onto a piece of papyrus made from processed Orene leaves.

For a small fee, they could request color be added to their design, and with Pikachu's encouragement, Ash had requested the three colors that made up their strange, complicated emblem, which looked so alien compared to the simpler, single-metal ones that made up the other teams.

A golden, curved, three pointed crown sat atop a silver double crescent. The crescent's lower tines flared out squarely before curing steeply down, both the gold and silver portions flanked on either side by the two halves of an odd, six-pointed, squashed copper star.

Pikachu had been confused at the odd, random design that Ash requested, but when they received their Rescue Kit in the mail, complete with a collection of the custom Rescue Badges and the emblem itself, Ash's new friend had been blown away by how beautiful it was, expertly wrought in perfect metal by the master crafters in the Rescue Guild.

Even while Pikachu was admiring their team emblem from ever angle, Ash still couldn't help but think something was missing from it, or something was off about the color⏤ but he could never put his finger on what, specifically, was missing.

They had proudly present their emblem to Kangaskhan, who _oohed_ and _awed_ over it appropriately, before granting them a fully expanded Rescue Team Storage drawer, complete with space-manipulated expansion, marked permanently with their emblem to show they were a fully-qualified Rescue Team.

And now, all of that was gone.

If he could bring nothing else from this town that had become a home to him, Ash would bring that emblem with them, to the ends of the earth if need be.

In some strange way, this emblem was a part of him, tied to him as strongly as his bond with Pikachu, and he couldn't bear to leave it behind, to be destroyed by the very people Ash had fought so hard to protect.

Bracing his legs and leaping off of the wooden counter, Ash landed in the grass and felt the morning dew under his bare hands and feet once more, evaporating slowly as the sun began its ascent in earnest, clearing the tops of the forest now with it's bright, warm light, sending a new wave of energy through him as his bulb soaked in the sunlight.

Moving now, with more haste than caution, Ash made his way back through his shortcut in the hedgerow and slipped out of town once more, hearing coins jingling softly in his money pouch, much more than he usually walked around with before depositing it, but not wanting to risk robbing Persian's bank⏤

There was plenty of coin on him and Pikachu's persons from their last, long mission, and if they _did_ run out of food or supplies while out in the wilderness, they might be able to have Pikachu approach traders in any towns they might encounter.

_Might._

Once they left this town, there would be no certainties.

But if they stayed, they would certainly be dead by daylight.

The fog from before had now vanished in the town almost entirely, only hanging low over the river and the bridge, obscuring the other shore.

Thankful that their base would be hidden from the town for at least a little while, Ash made his way across the large, wide bridge, every step taking him further and further from everything he had come to know.

Homesickness knawed at his heart, stewing with guilt and poisonous self-loathing, until his stomach was roiling with the turbulent emotions.

Every step he took was a step where he wondered, _should I stay?_

Should I die here?

Should I die here, to make things right for this world?

Could I convince them to leave Pikachu alone, convince them that I had all of our teammates under some kind of human control, and that they were all innocent of the crimes I had committed?

Should I stay here, to repay Gardevoir, who risked everything to save my past self, and who I abandoned to suffer for eternity under the curse meant for me?

But as the sun cast a long, looming shadow in front of him, as though highlighting the evils inside his heart…

Another, familiar figure emerged from the mist.

" _Ash!"_ The figure cried out in relief, voice muffled in the fog as Pikachu rammed into his side, shaking with a mixture of anxiety and adrenaline, little jolts of static zipping between them as Pikachu's short, stiff fur generated electricity to go with the high emotions.

All of Ash's doubts, all of his worry, all of his homesickness vanished in an instant.

"Pikachu!" Ash greeted, just as relieved, nuzzling his face against his partner's, returning the affection easily in the manner that had become instinct. The small zaps of electricity didn't bother him in the slightest, and he had found himself missing the zings whenever Pikachu went home for the night, especially after long nights of curling up in dungeons for warmth and security during their longer missions.

"Was there any trouble? Are you okay?" Pikachu asked quickly, ears pinned back in worry. Noticing the bulging saddlebags, Pikachu quickly and efficiently went about redistributing the weight into the familiar, more traditional, bipedal-optimized backpack that was quickly placed on the ground to allow for more organized movement.

"No, no trouble. Kecleon was asleep at the shop counter, but I was able to get all of the apples I could, and left plenty of payment where they would find it." Ash supplied, using his vines to help hold the backpack up.

Pikachu packed the apples, gummies, and then seeds into the bottom of the bag, nice and snug, forming a dense base for their more lightweight items to sit on top of, with plenty of room for any equipment they could pick up along the way.

"That's good, I know they want to kill us an all, but part of me still thinks…. Still hopes that one day, we can change their minds. They… I still think they're good people, but they're scared, and they're trying to do what they think is right, for themselves _and_ the world." Pikachu confided quietly, "I can't argue with those sentiments, Ash, but I can't let them hurt _you,_ either. You're my best friend, you're my partner, and I _know_ they're wrong about you, and who you were before. Even if _you_ don't believe it, I'll believe for the both of us, okay?"

Pikachu must have seen his hesitation on the bridge, and like usual, had the uncanny ability to read his mind and his heart to a 't'.

"Okay." Ash agreed, feeling a soft smile taking over his expression in the face of Pikachu's earnest fervor.

There was a moment of silence, wherein Pikachu picked the newly-arranged backpack back up and slung it back on. With no further words, they resumed their walk across the bridge, their steps quiet, barely audible over the gentle rush of the river below.

As they reached the last section of the bridge and stepped off onto the cobblestones once more, Ash caught a glimpse of their base in the distance, green and squat, low to the ground, the sight of it instilling that familiar, hard to resist urge to burrow into the cozy, warm earth⏤ even after all this time of calling it home.

And now, they were leaving it, and everything else behind.

"Are you ready to go? We should leave, while it's still early." Pikachu said quietly, following his gaze to their base.

Ash tore his gaze away from their base, and looked at his partner again.

The rising sun was painting Pikachu's distinct golden fur with shimmers of orange and red, and the quiet but fierce expression on his partner's face reminded him:

He wasn't leaving everything behind⏤

His everything was right beside him.

His everything was his partner.

His Pikachu.

"Yeah," Ash said, nodding, "Let's go, buddy."


End file.
